Love of the arts has guided and inspired me my whole life. I was a dancer before I was an executive: I breathed and lived the arts. They have, in large part, made me the individual that I am: using the arts as the foundation of understanding I have approached the people in my life and taught my children.

At Lincoln Center Institute, which is a part of Lincoln Center, my love of the arts is shared across the board, from staff to leaders of LCPA’s affiliate organizations. As well, we all share the understanding of the mission and importance of the arts in the lives of all.

“Scott,” you say, “you’ve got a terrific job and we’re jealous. But what is your point?” The point is that I have always believed that the arts—or art for art’s sake, if you will—were a blessing in and of themselves: an extraordinary expression of humanity that has a transformative ability within our society and allows us, people from vastly different traditions across the globe, to meet and to share our cultural aesthetic in peace.

A rich and self-sufficient treasure then, I thought. But I have had to revise my thinking. I did not change an iota of my belief, but I’ve had to add new elements to it. The arts will always be an unequaled educational experience. But the scope of that vision has widened. The arts now have to be part and parcel of educational preparation for college, and, above all, for the workforce. The arts are a natural portal into imagination, its product and its fuel. Imagination is, in turn, the fuel of creativity and innovation, essential components of a résumé in this century. Lincoln Center Institute’s 50 Imagination Conversations project is an ambitious new initiative to explore the role and importance of imagination in all areas of human endeavor, from the artist’s studio to the classroom to the boardroom. Continue reading →